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Lilly, Elizabeth

Let Me Fix You a Plate: A Tale of Two Kitchens

40 pp. | Holiday/Porter | September, 2021 | Trade ISBN 978-0-8234-4325-3 $18.99
(2) K-3 Colombian American author-illustrator Lilly takes readers along on a family road trip in this "tale of two kitchens" (and two cultures) that goes from the mountains of West Virginia to "a little orange house on a patch of scratchy grass" in Florida. Once a year, our young narrator and her family (parents, siblings, and dog) pile into their minivan and drive "for hours and hours" to visit the two sides of their extended family. First stop: Mamaw and Papaw's house, where they share sausages and ­blackberry jam on toast for breakfast and make banana pudding together. When they arrive at Abuela and Abuelo's place three days later, it's a midnight feast of arroz and tostones with all the relatives. ­Alongside annual traditions, everyday rituals reconnect each parent to their family of origin--in Mamaw's kitchen, Papaw and the narrator's father drink their coffee the same way, out of matching cups; in Abuela's kitchen, we see "my mom and her mom, cooking and chatting together"--so that when the week is over, the family heads back to their home in the city with "tummies full, hearts fuller." Layering color and shadow over a loose pen-and-ink line, Lilly's ­illustrations convey warmth, ­atmosphere, and a wealth of detail. Front and back endpapers trace the landscape of the journey and spotlight special items from each of the two homes, some of which, readers will note, find their way into one more kitchen: this blended family's own.
Reviewer: Anamaría Anderson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

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